Heart versus Mind
by Etsuko An
Summary: Anzu uprooted herself from her sheltered life in Domino to fulfill her only dream—to become a successful and famous dancer in New York. Everything is new to her, until she bumps into a certain someone who she'd rather have forgotten.  Azureshipping
1. From Dreams to Reality

**Heart versus mind  
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Summary: Anzu uprooted herself from her sheltered life in Domino to fulfill her only dream—to become a successful and famous dancer in New York. She's surrounded by new and different people in contrast to her former life, until she meets up with one person from her past that she'd rather have forgotten: Seto Kaiba. (Azureshipping)

Disclaimer: Sadly, Yu-Gi-Oh is not, was not, and never will be mine. Not a single cent is gained from this fanfiction.

Note: Four years have passed since the ceremonial duel. Take the ages of everyone in the anime and add four years to it. Romance/angst featuring Azureshipping. Don't like the couple, don't read…unless you want to give them a try :D. That is all. Oh wait, almost forgot to thank my beta reader: Forest Sentry Koneji.

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><p><strong>Chapter 1- From Dreams to Reality<strong>

Two hours into practice and she finally had the chance to sit and rest a bit on the cold floor stretching out her legs. She looked like a total wreck. Her black leotards and tank top clung to her sweaty body while the grease from her hair made her hair bun fall apart.

"Anzu! Are you seriously trying or are you just slacking off?" The instructor yelled. Anzu glared at her Russian ballet professor as tears welled in her eyes. It's not as if she wasn't trying, but Ullana insists on seeing perfection after learning the steps once. Not that she wasn't able to, but she had a lot on her mind. A lot of aspiring dancers were auditioning for the female lead role and the pressure was getting to her—especially with the constant 'reminders' from her teacher.

"Anzu, are you liste—"

"Yes! I can hear you!" She snapped. Immediately she realized her mistake and rubbed the temples of her head. Arguing would just make practice more difficult.

"Is that so? I couldn't tell by the way you've been dancing recently. If you want to survive in this business you better stay focused or the competition will crush you."

'Survive?' Isn't that what she was barely managing to do? Taking into account the student loans, tuition for private dance lessons, and the cost of living in New York, she had accumulated quite a large debt with only a meager job at a local café as her financial resource. It's not like she didn't know what she was getting herself into when she began her career; her parents foresaw all her present hardships.

"_You are a smart girl. Use your intelligence and take up something that will secure your future. Your father and I don't want to see you end up struggling for survival," her mother waited for a reply, staring at her intently in a mother-knows-best kind of way, but her silence showed her disagreement._

"_You know how much dancing means to me."_

"_Anzu, do you really want to do this? You're only eighteen. So young and naïve, you don't know the value of security!" Her mom asked exasperated shaking her daughter by the shoulders. Her father's eyes were averted to somewhere else, tired of knocking heads with his daughter every time this topic would come up._

"_Mom, dad, this is my dream! I know it's not what you want from me, but I really believe this will make me happy. I promise you, I won't fail." Her parents were unable to speak. Countless arguments made them realize that nothing that they could ever say would even make a dent to that stubborn head of hers. _

"_Please…" she begged as she gently placed her hands over her mother's, "let me go."_

'Go.'

"_You're not ready to move out."_

'Move.'

"_I want to dance!"_

'Dance!'

Anxiety locked her in her head again and mixed the continual orders coming from Ullana with her own thoughts. She could see the scowl on her instructor's face from the mirror wall. Apparently she'd been zoning out far past the designated break time.

"Glad to see that you've come back to reality. Now, begin, from the top!"

A cheery melody filled the studio as the pianist started to play. On cue, Anzu began pirouetting around covering the majority of the dance floor making sure her posture was perfect, her toes perfectly pointed, and all the while managing to keep her face poised disguising the pain of holding one's entire body weight on a single toe.

"That's better, but you're still restricted. You need to learn how to let go. Release any inhibition and express the character. Even if you dance well, you need to be able to convince the audience or better yet, the judicators that you are capable of and worthy of dancing this part!"

Anzu was lucky to have gotten Ullana as her ballet instructor. Though she was strict, she had good reason to be. Ullana, before she retired, was a prima ballerina gracing the stages of many European theatre houses. Even though Anzu had been dancing her entire life, Ullana could always pinpoint little flaws in her dancing.

The clock at the opposite side of the room read twelve noon—which marked the end of the lesson. Her instructor waved her hand in dismissal and sighed, "We're out of time. That's enough for today." Both Ullana and the pianist left the dance studio leaving Anzu there alone.

Practice did not go well for her. How could she be breaking like this? She was so close, always close – but never exact.

'Well, that was rigorous as always.' Anzu dabbed the white fluffy towel on to her perspired forehead. It's been four years since high school graduation. Ever since she was accepted into Juilliard her life completely revolved around dancing. This was her final year as an undergraduate dance student and she still had not landed a leading female role. There were a lot of amazing dancers, considering she was in New York, a city dedicated to the arts. She was one of the nine-hundred-ninety-nine-thousand-nine-hundred-ninety-nine in a million. She was replaceable and she hated it. There was one way to get to the top, and it was also the easiest. To be a 'successful' dancer would mean to snag the eye of someone influential that would be a 'patron'.

Anzu sighed.

'No.'

She just couldn't imagine herself doing it. Thinking about all the other young girls that whored themselves out to the nearest man that would ensure their roles left her utterly disgusted. No, she, Anzu Mazaki, would not succumb to becoming some scumbag's joy toy. Even if that meant she would always wind up getting supporting roles.

Anzu left the studio tired and frustrated. Her grumbling stomach said it was time for lunch. She headed towards a local deli shop that was a couple blocks from the studio. As she was walking down the busy streets jam packed with people she realized just how alone she was. In a heavy populated city, she knew only a few people which were acquaintances, colleagues, and professors. She had adjusted herself to her new home, but she missed her real friends back in Domino. It was hard, making new friends. When she thought about it, she didn't even want new friends. Since, it's not what she came here for.

Dance. That's what's most important right now.

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><p>Looking back, he always knew that he would get what he wanted. His dream of building his chain of amusement parks around the world became reality. Deals with foreign investors were so successful that there was at least one Kaibaland in Asia, North America, and Europe. His health took a great toll due to his neglect for his own limits, but it was all worth it and he had absolutely no intention of stopping the expansion of his corporation. Even now he was working in his dark office at the top floor of Kaiba Corp. tower, finalizing the details to his upcoming project at one of his American branches.<p>

The bright glow from his laptop was the only light illuminating his face. His eyes were strained from staring at a white screen lined with paragraphs of small black text, but he finished his work efficiently. The last step of his nightly routine involved him checking his numerous unopened emails. He only skimmed for anything that was marked urgent.

'_American KC Business proposition'_, he read. Same old news. There were always people asking him to make deals and their ideas were, for the majority of the time, ridiculous. Only a select few ever piqued his interest, which practically meant any business foray that was related to games, Duel Monsters, or technology.

There was this one sender, Mr. Huxley, that has been constantly pestering him for the past month on an investment deal. The man's persistence was aggravating and annoying since his inbox was completely flooded with emails from him. Begrudgingly, he clicked the first unopened email in his inbox that was sent from him.

_Dear Mr. Seto Kaiba,_

_As you know, the _fame_of your Kaibaland amusement parks has garnered the attention of numerous people in the corporate world.__We, the people of a humble company called Duelist Playhouse, wish to partake in your upcoming expansion project in New York. Since the city is occupied by endless towers of bank corporations and hotels, there is not enough land to build another Kaibaland. However, we're wondering if you'd be interested in investing in a Duel Monsters Museum that showcases all the different kinds of monsters and duel monster legends in wax form. I really wish to meet with you in person to discuss it further. I won't back down until you give me a chance._

Edward Huxley

"Wax monsters… ridiculous." Seto Kaiba had read enough. New York had limited space, but he did own the KC skyscraper in the heart of the city. He had many proposals concerning museums about duel monsters, but he thought it would be better of making the monsters into solid holograms instead of wax. If the museum ever caught fire than there would definitely be a loss of profit. Besides, his corporation already owned a couple in Japan.

At first hearing, it sounded like a complete paradox. How can a hologram be solid? A small feat to accomplish, really. His company was already developing a way to make holographic projections appear and feel three dimensional.

His mental pondering was interrupted by a soft knock on the door.

"Hey, big brother," Mokuba entered the dark room and plopped down on one of the couches. "It's already two in the morning. Haven't you worked enough?"

Seto looked up from the computer and gave his brother a blank stare as if his younger brother did not already know the answer.

"You need sleep." Mokuba spoke nonchalantly, knowing his advice wouldn't be heeded.

"Sleep is for the weak, Mokuba. I've learned to live without it. Anyways, I've just finished." Mokuba often stayed at Kaiba Corp tower as well, in support for his brother. Usually, Seto would make him go home, but Mokuba was resolute in his own choices.

"So, anything interesting?"

"It's not my definition of interesting. Stupid? Yes. This, Mr. Huxley, has been proposing that our corporation invest in a duel monster 'wax' museum. What a joke."

"Totally. Who needs wax when you have the best holographic technology in the world!" Mokuba chimed in agreement. Seto smiled, satisfied with his little brother's faith. "I mean, what century are they from? Unless, the Americans are into those kinds of things? Are you planning on investing in it?"

"I'm thinking about it. He won't stop pestering me until I meet him. It's true that their ideas of attractions are …less advanced, but we could tweak the original idea. Anyways, I have an entertaining idea." As long as it could attract the attention of bored people that were willing to spend their money, there would be potential. He was certain that his new idea would turn this mundane museum into something exciting.

He closed all the running applications on his desktop and shut his laptop off.

"Let's go home. We have another long day ahead of us since we'll be heading to New York."

"Oh, I won't be joining you." Mokuba stated so matter-of-factly that it startled Seto.

"The Domino Kaibaland mainframe had been infiltrated by a pair of juvenile hackers that managed to override the security system. They messed up the coding to a lot of rides, including the Blue Eyes White Dragon rollercoaster. A couple of kids were left hanging upside down for a couple of hours today. We got quite the complaints. Luckily, they didn't file any law suits against us."

Seto only nodded. Mokuba could handle it by himself. Hearing him speak so professional reminded him that Mokuba had grown up to be a great vice president. He understood that Mokuba was learning how to be independent from him and did so by managing parts of the KC Empire by himself. Though he was proud, he sometimes missed the days where he could just drag his little brother wherever he desired.

"Fine. Get everything back in line by the time I come back."

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><p>Etsuko's note: Just laying out the foundation, thus the slooow progression. I know the scene with Kaiba in his office is probably one of the most overused scenes, but I'm limited to canon. As for Anzu, she's finally living her dream in New York. Hurray! Oh, and Ullana is read as "You-Lee-Yanna" in case anyone was wondering the Russian pronunciation. Any comments? Characterization ok? If you're a ballet dancer and have any information you'd like to share, that would make my life easier. If not, I'll have to research about it. =.=<p> 


	2. Perfectly Kaibacentric

Disclaimer: If Yu-Gi-Oh were mine I'd make Seto and Anzu canon, but alas it's not. No profit is made from this either.

Etsuko's note: Here, my lovely readers, I wrote a nice long chappie for you. :) Beta read by Forest Sentry Koneji.

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><p><strong>Chapter 2—Perfectly Kaiba-centric<strong>

It was seven in the morning in Domino city. The sun emerged from its restful night and caressed the city with its warm beams of light. It was a perfect start to a glorious sunny day.

Seto Kaiba, on the other hand, barely had five hours of sleep. He looked deathly pale and had the darkest circles underneath his eyes. His appearance didn't look the part, but he was fully awake and accustomed to sleep deprivation. His little brother insisted on postponing the trip, worried that he wouldn't be able to fly the whole flight and fall asleep, but he reassured him that he would use autopilot when needed. Lately, he found that his little brother had taken it upon himself to act as the worrying elder sibling, which perplexed him because usually it was the other way around.

"Are you sure you really want to bring _that_ jet?" Mokuba Kaiba asked through his headset with a heavy tone of discord. The younger Kaiba was standing in the control room looking through the glass panes at his brother who was seated at the interior of the head of the giant metal dragon. Sure, it was his older brother's signature jet, but it would have been wiser to go in one of Kaiba Corp's ordinary private jets. The last time he flew in his blazingly obvious Blue Eyes the paparazzi ran after Seto as soon as he landed causing him to be bombarded with blinding camera flashes and photographers calling out his name from all directions. Either his brother's egoism was preventing himself from thinking practically or he actually liked getting what most people would claim as unwanted attention.

"I thought you wanted your arrival to be inconspicuous this time."

"I'll be landing at the top of KC tower. They won't catch me," Seto replied coolly from the cockpit.

"If you say so, Seto," Mokuba snickered. He knew full well that his brother enjoyed being the center of attention. His brother's previous antics were evidence enough: projecting his face on multiple screens in Domino while standing at the rim of a flying helicopter to announce his Battle City tournament and flying in on a jetpack for his entrance to the KC Grand Prix. His brother hadn't changed a bit; he still loved making a grand entrance.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes." Seto replied curtly. Mokuba typed the code that locked the dragon's long feet to the catapult accelerator runway. Seto pulled the handle that switched the dragon's gears from neutral mode to fly mode.

"All right, launch sequence initiated. Exit in three…two…one…"

The rockets attached to the bottom of the wings lit up with blue flames and the metal ski catapults attached to its feet released the dragon into the air. Seto, piloting his Blue Eyes White Dragon jet, blasted into the sky, flying so fast that in seconds it only looked like a speck of light in the distance. It only left a white line behind its tail marking its linear trajectory.

"Well, there he goes, off on another conquest," Mokuba looked through the open hatch.

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><p>Anzu spotted him, there at the circular table at the far corner of the room sitting in his usual spot with one leg crossed over the other. A middle aged man dressed in a grey suit with a balding head and rectangular spectacles. This man was a usual customer and he specifically requested to always be served by her. Anzu wasn't sure whether or not he was a stalker or whether he just liked taking his coffee at the café that she worked at. It was highly unlikely that it was the café that attracted him because Seventh Avenue Café was simple and mundane with a three star rating. So, she was probably the reason. Their conversations were short and sweet, so she didn't think much of it. She never asked for his name as it never really interested her, but from what she's heard his name was Edward. However, she never used it in case she was wrong.<p>

"How would you like your coffee today, sir?" Anzu politely asked as she stood at the side of the table dressed in her uniform black ensemble set with a knee length blue kitchen apron. She already knew what he usually ordered, but asked for convention's sake and the possibility that he could request for something different.

"Black," he replied, "but bring a plate of sugar cubes on the side."

Anzu proceeded to jot down his usual demand with her blue pen on the mini black notepad.

"Okay, so you want a caramel dipped donut, a small bowl of cream of broccoli soup, and a large black coffee with a plate of sugar cubes," Anzu recited the list in confirmation, "Is that all, sir?"

"Yes, thank you."

"Got it. I'll be right back with your order." She replied cheerfully. Anzu gave a slight bow of the head to be polite before she took her leave. She was definitely a sought after server due to her friendliness and respect towards customers.

The man took out his newspaper and began to read, covering his entire face with the huge rectangular pages. Before she left, she caught a glimpse of the front page. Anzu's eye's narrowed as she saw the uplifted corners of a mouth in a devious smirk which notoriously belonged to the one person she'd rather never see again, the prince of the corporate world—Seto Kaiba. He hadn't changed at all since the last time she saw him. He had the same short brown hair cut, the same infamous smirk, and the same condescending deep blue eyes. How she hated seeing that smug look every other day in the paper.

'_Ever since he built that stupid skyscraper one year ago he thinks that he owns the entire city. Well, he doesn't. Not yet at least, but obviously that's his plan,_' Anzu murmured her thoughts softly that only she could hear. His company had already taken control over most businesses in Japan, so he set his sights abroad.

She quickly shook her head trying to expel the thought of Kaiba out of her mind. She must've looked quite peculiar muttering and shaking her head as she walked. At least she wasn't making wild gestures or else she would've really looked crazy. Her customer peered at her from the top of his newspaper, not with a look of impatience, but one of curiosity. Several other people turned to look at her as well. The feeling of all eyes in the room watching her was very unpleasant. She could feel her cheeks flush, so she quietly sped up her walking to the back of the counter and into the kitchen. After placing the doughnut, soup, and coffee on a platter, she brought it to the customer.

"Here you go, sir. Sorry for the wait," She said apologetically while setting the plates of food out on the table.

The customer put his newspaper down and revealed a cheeky smile as if he knew exactly who she was being flustered about.

"Don't worry a thing about it, baby face," He said casually, but Anzu was quite offended. He may be a regular customer, but he sure as hell did not have the familiarity to call her by a pet name.

'_Baby face? Why I ought to—'_Her veins throbbed at the side of her head and her grip around the mug tightened. '_Calm down'_ she thought to relax herself. '_Throwing the coffee at his face would accomplish nothing_,' said the little angelic voice in her head. It could only get her fired.

"I saw you had your eyes on the front page," This was the first time that he said anything to her other than the regular request.

"Well, it's kind of hard not to notice since—"

"It's Seto Kaiba," he said, finishing her sentence, "I understand. You can't help but desire him."

Her? Desiring Kaiba? Anzu had to clench her teeth in order to keep herself from laughing.

"All the girls in the city seem to be infatuated with him." He continued and then took a sip of his coffee.

'_Yeah, all the ones wearing rose-colored glasses_,' She thought. All the girls in the city didn't know him personally and thought he would be some romantic gentleman that would sweep them off their feet. _'If only they knew the truth.'_

"Sir, this is really something I have no business to talk about with you." She said, trying to drop the subject as nicely as she could. It was bad enough seeing Kaiba's face in the paper every other day, but having to talk about him with some strange man she barely knew wasn't exactly helping her live a life not revolving around Kaiba. _'Was this his idea of small talk?_'

"Wouldn't you like to meet him?" He pressed, clearly not understanding the message she was giving off.

"No." She said bluntly. In fact, she'd try her hardest to avoid him.

He raised his eyebrows in disbelief at a girl who turned down an offer to meet THE Seto Kaiba. Any ordinary girl would have jumped at the chance.

"He'll be here on business later this evening."

"Of course, that's why he'll be here. He's a businessman after all." She snapped obnoxiously and turned her back walking away.

"Anzu Mazaki," He said sternly. That got her attention because she suddenly stopped and pivoted around. First of all, she was shocked he didn't butcher her name, and second of all, only her first name was written on her nametag. So, he couldn't have read it from there. So, how?

"You're a ballerina, correct?" She nodded. "I've watched you dance in many shows. Too bad you're always a supporting character. This could be your chance to finally get a lead role. Do you really want to work here your whole life?"

"A fan? I'm flattered, but you don't have to worry, because this job is only getting me through dance school."

"But you know, Kaiba Corporation is on a diligent conquest of the city, I'm sure wouldn't mind patronizing your career. I pity you for working at this third rate job,"

Anzu's eyes widened. She wasn't sure if he was actually concerned or if he was comparing her to some low life leech. "I don't need your pity, nor do I want anything to do with , or any other businessman for that matter."

"Such a shame," He paused, "for your talent to be wasted."

"I assure you," she said bitterly, "it will not."

"Is there a problem here?" Her manager budded into the conversation. Anzu thanked goodness that she was finally saved.

"Ah, just talking to your lovely waitress. Sorry for hogging her."

"Oh, is that so? Well, my employee needs to cater to everyone, not just you. So you'll have to let her go now. Come along, Anzu. I need to talk with you."

"Wait." He took out his wallet and pulled out a folded bill placing it inside the pocket of Anzu's apron so quickly she didn't have the chance to decline it. "Keep the change."

Her manager and Anzu exchanged glances and left the room. As soon as they stepped into the kitchen they stood facing each other. She knew her manager wasn't happy by the irritated expression of her face.

"Here," Anzu took out the bill from her apron holding it out to her manager trying to make amends for the scene she just had.

"Keep it. Obviously it was meant for you," she said pushing the outstretched hand back towards Anzu. The young employee retracted her hand and put the twenty in her wallet.

"You seem to be attracting quite the attention today."

"Honestly, it wasn't my fault. He just started—"

"Take the rest of the day off."

"But—"

"No, but's. Consider it as a paid day off."

"What? You're still going to pay me even if I didn't complete my shift for today?" Anzu had three more hours until she was off.

"I'm not that cold hearted, Anzu. Clearly that man was harassing you."

"I know! It was unbearable. He kept going on and on about Kaiba!" She shouted loudly.

"Quiet down, he's still outside. How long has he been stalking you? Five weeks now?" She asked rhetorically. Though he hadn't done anything yet, she had heard of a man around the city that would go to local cafés that tried to capture girls for his nightclub. This quiet brooding man could be one of them. "I wonder if he goes around in his spare time doing this to all the girls in the city."

"If he does then I must be one of his unlucky targets."

"If that's the case I'm thinking of switching you to dish washer."

"You're…demoting me?"

"For the time being, this is for your own safety. Either you take this or you find another job on short notice."

"Fine." Anzu understood, but she was slightly annoyed. If that stupid man hadn't bothered her then maybe she wouldn't have to be demoted to a dishwasher. It wouldn't be that bad she figured. At least she'd have some gloves so her hands wouldn't wrinkle like a prune.

She went to her locker to pack up her belongings, which was simply a small purse that contained her dorm keys and a water bottle for hydration. She put her apron in her purse. This was a rare day off, to make it better, a paid day off. She usually spent her Friday evenings and weekends working at the café and weekdays were dedicated to dance. She had private ballet dance lessons in the morning with Ullana, then she had an hour break to go eat lunch, then she'd have to go to her group lessons: contemporary dance class, breakdancing class, and hiphop classes. It was a pretty demanding class load, but what'd she expect from Juilliard. They were training her to be a well rounded dancer. Though she really enjoyed the variety of dances, ballet was what she liked the best and she chose it as her major. She felt deep attachment to it since she was classically trained in ballet from the young age of six.

Actually, it was when she was six that she got to see her first ballet. Her parents probably regret taking her to see it now. The first ballet she ever saw was _The Sleeping Beauty_, a ballet by Tchaikovsky. It was her Christmas present. She remembered it clearly. She was sitting in the front row with her parents with wide sparkling eyes. As she sat and watched them perform, she was inspired by the graceful movements and elegant costumes of the entire cast, especially Princess Aurora. It made a huge impression on her as a child. She vowed that one day she would be on that stage playing the lead part awing the audience. The female lead made the part look easy, dancing fluidly from perfect _arabesques_ into _attitude turns_ in the second act. Right now, she just had to endure living like a pauper before she could be the princess on the stage.

"Okay, I'll be going now! See ya!"

"Take care."

Anzu gently let the door close behind her with a soft click. She left through the backdoor of the café to a back alley where she could stealthily make her escape in the shadows. She was like a kunoichi dressed in all black, tiptoeing through the dark and narrow passageway. She kept throwing back nervous glances at the green metal backdoor, paranoid that the old man would somehow follow her. She arrived at the connection to the main road and poked her head out looking left and right to see if it was safe to leave. No stalker in sight, it was all clear.

The first thing on her mind was to go to a cheap outlet store. In case that guy wouldn't leave her alone, she needed a disguise.

After walking for fifteen minutes she found what she was looking for, a wig shop. She always kept her hair short because long hair was time consuming and a nuisance to take care of. She liked her short hair, but she thought wearing a wig would be a nice change without actually having to permanently alter her appearance. Looking around, she started to feel overwhelmed because the shop had so many wigs of different colors and lengths to try on. She didn't really have a specific style in mind.

She picked up a fiery red wig and put it on. A frowning reflection stared back at her in the circular mirror where she stood in front of. She would attract more attention than deflect it. She needed something that would make her blend in.

"Hi, do you need any help?" She turned around to see who asked her. It was a small elderly granny who probably owned the store.

"Um, no I'm just browsing..."

"Ah, call me if you need anything."

"All right, thanks."

Red was out. Brown was out too, since that was her natural hair colour. Blonde? She'd give it a shot. She picked out a long blonde wig and laughed. She looked like a prepubescent Mai.

"That one looks nice on you!" The granny said.

"Oh really?" She did look quite nice as a blonde. It matched her blue eyes. Anyways, maybe it could help her in auditions if she ever needed to transform her appearance to look like a character.

"Oh, but you should try this one on. It'd look even better." She held out a lightly layered turquoise blue wig. Anzu looked skeptical. "Trust me, this'll look nice on you."

Anzu took off the blonde wig and tried the turquoise one on.

She was surprised that it did look better. "Hmmm….I don't think I have enough money for both of them. I think I'll just take the blonde one."

"Not to be nosy, but why are you buying a wig when you're natural hair is already beautiful?"

"Because a man was harassing me today."

The elderly woman's looked appalled at what she just heard. "Oh really? If that's the case, then I'd be more than willing to help you." Then she smiled, "I'll give you a good deal, buy one get one free! How's that sound?"

"Sounds great!"

"But I'll have to charge you on the more expensive one."

"I knew there was a catch."

Anzu followed the granny to the cash register holding the two wigs.

"The blonde wig will cost thirty dollars. How will you be paying?"

"Cash." As she took out a ten and twenty dollar bill, a card fell out with it that was faced down on the floor.

'_Strange,'_ Anzu thought. '_I don't have any business cards in my wallet.'_

She bent down to pick it up. Flipping it over she read, '_Edward Huxley.'_

So, she was right about his name. She growled which started the little old woman behind the counter who was wrapping up her wigs in a box.

"What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing." She laughed nervously. She took her purchased items and left the store.

'_Well, at least now I know who to report."_ Just then she heard the loud zoom of a jet. As she looked up to the dark sky, she saw a streak of white heading towards Kaiba Corp tower. She sighed and thought her evening was perfectly Kaiba-centric.

* * *

><p>Kaiba leaned back in his seat and looked out through the transparent glass as the jet continued to fly on autopilot. In the blanket of darkness he could see a city full of tall pillars decorated with windows of bright yellow boxes which came from rooms with their lights still on. As he slowly descended he could see cars still driving on the road across the long Brooklyn Bridge suspended over the calm East River and in the distance the Statue of Liberty was vaguely visible. Being one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world, people were always awake at any time. It was a city that never slept—just how he liked it.<p>

Though there were impressive skyscrapers, his triumphed over all of them, including the Empire State Building, with a staggering height of fourteen hundred feet. It was made of entirely of blue tinted glass and distinguished itself by its cylindrical shape. At the very top of the building was a giant landing pad with the initial of his company's logo, KC, in giant letters.

The usual trip from Domino to New York was about thirteen to fourteen hours, but he managed to cut the time down in half. Seto was eager to stretch out his legs and input the landing sequence hastily. The dragon descended quickly at the centre of his logo on top of his tower. The giant head lowered itself in front of a row of board members who stood parallel to each other waiting for their boss to step out of his jet. When the cockpit opened Seto stepped out, briefcase in hand, and walked in the middle of them while all of his board members bowed deeply as he passed them. At the end of the line stood a balding middle-aged man with a grey suit.

"Hello, Mr. Kaiba. It's good of you to finally accept my proposal."

* * *

><p>Etsuko's Note: I am a perfectionist and beat myself over the minutest details, which is why it takes me long to update. Even if I do have a beta reader, if anything seems out-of-place or out-of-character go ahead and tell me. By the way, how's the length? I think it's a little long, but I didn't plan it to be that way.<p> 


	3. Scrap Paper

Disclaimer-Not mine. Capiche?

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><p>Chapter 3—Scrap Paper<p>

Anzu had arrived safely to her dorm. She took out her gold key and unlocked the door. Her right hand gripped the door knob and turned it, opening it as gently as she could, but she couldn't avoid making an eerie creak resonate from the un-oiled hinges as the door swung open. The loud squeak broke the silence of the night and was surely heard by her next door neighbours. The walls were paper thin.

A crevice of light from the hallway pierced through the darkness of the living area. Her figure was an opaque human from against the light.

She closed the door behind her and dropped her bags to the floor and stood there with her back leaned against the solid metal. She shut her eyes, processing the previous event at the café. Tomorrow she had another day of work. She really didn't want to suddenly change jobs, after one little argument. No big deal. She had a crazed fan, that's all. The café was in the vicinity of the campus and easily accessible by foot, so she couldn't just let go of it.

She picked up her bags and walked to her room, not bothering to turn on the lights. She didn't bother to change out of her unclean clothes. Exhausted, she collapsed on to her bed face front and fell into deep sleep.

In a room full of board of directors, Seto Kaiba stood with his back facing them and his hands shoved in his pocket while looking out the glass window.

He never said that he accepted this proposal, but Huxley thought otherwise and was beyond overconfident when he greeted him awhile back at the rooftop with that bold assumption.

It had not even been an hour since he landed and he was stuck in a board meeting. There was no time for rest. Every second counts. Breathing slowly, Seto found himself drifting between wakefulness and sleep. His eyelids shut a little longer with every blink. He was paying half-attention and only picked up on the keywords and phrases of the droning voice of a middle aged man.

"So, , a Duel Monsters wax museum would attract a lot of the young duelists within the city."

_Young duelists? Are there any left? _Kaiba sneered at the thought. Once Duel Monsters was a prominent game played by people of all ages, but lately only the people of his age seemed to enjoy it. The youth didn't have the patience to study the rules and strategies much less have the IQ.

"There are millions of types of monsters that people have never heard about."

'_True. Though Pegasus had stopped the creation of new cards quite a long time ago, there are numerous rare cards that the public will never get to see.'_

"I was thinking of having the museum done at an old abandoned hotel on the outskirts of Manhattan. It's five stories high and each floor is at least three thousand square feet, so you would have enough room to display the monsters."

Kaiba sighed. "If you want to make the monsters out of wax, then why did you pester me about this? Why do you need Kaiba Corp? I specialize in creating advanced technology not art, so if you want to go on with your little plan it would be better off to contact Industrial Illusions and get them to invest in your project."

"Well, is that what you're worried about? I have connections to other Pegasus regarding those art related details. I just need your knowledge about trading cards and rare monsters. Since you are currently the world champion of the game, you probably know which monsters are best," Huxley said.

Kaiba turned around. His icy glare was on the old man standing at the front of the room presenting his plan on the powerpoint screen.

'_At least this man knows how to do one thing right'_, Kaiba thought, _'he knows when to kiss ass. Fool. I hate asskissers.'_

The white suited CEO walked back to his leather chair at the head of the long black granite table and interlocked his hands resting his chin on top of them.

"So, is that all, Huxley?" Kaiba drawled with a tone of annoyance and the disregard of addressing him with a polite title.

"Yes." Then he walked over to where Kaiba sat with a stack of papers that went in detail about the plan. "Everything is written out here for you to read." He held it out to him and smiled knowing that Kaiba probably only listened to half of what he has just said.

Seto, frowning, snatched the paper away from him so fast that it sliced through a layer of Huxley's hand. Huxley winced and blood seeped out from the deep line etched in between his thumb and index finger.

Kaiba gave a slight sadistic smile and sarcastically asked, "Need a band-aid?"

"No, I'm fine." Huxley replied.

Seto speed read through the bulk of the business plan, flipping pages so fast people wondered if he just skipped portions. After moments of silent anticipation, he put the paper down.

"Mr. Kaiba," his corporate attorney, sitting at his right, worried that he happened to miss any fine print details, asked, "May I have a look at the papers?"

"Tsk. There's no need. This is complete trash!" Kaiba rippped the pages in quarters and threw it at Huxley's face, luckily his glasses took most of the damage. A sweep of gasps went around the room.

"Any objections?" Kaiba asked with raised eyebrows which were hidden beneath his long bangs. No one had the courage to speak.

This was only a mild version of Kaiba's temper. They had seen worse, but they felt sorry for the fool of a man named Edward Huxley who was currently picking up the pieces of his proposal that he worked extremely hard on. He held the pieces of paper in the palm of his hands and stared at them with a look of a broken man.

"Get out." Seto Kaiba coldy commanded. "All of you!"

"Yes, sir!" Everyone around the room stood from their seats relieved that their boss had kept this meeting short. They knew he was tired as well. Each one bowed to him before leaving the room. All left, except for one man.

"What are you still doing here? Are you deaf? I'm not interested."

Huxley's shoulders trembled and his head hung low. Kaiba thought he broke the man to the point of him crying in front of him.

'_How weak.' _Kaiba thought.

However, sudden maniacal laughter filled the room.

"Have I broken you to the point of insanity, Huxley?"

"Heh, Kaiba, do you think I'm that easily discouraged. I have, after all, been pestering you for quite a while now. Don't underestimate me." He then pulled another copy of his proposal from his briefcase and dropped it in front of him. "I knew you would act this way, which is why I created multiple copies of it."

"You really are a pest. Insignificant and annoying. You know what I do with pests? I exterminate them. SECURITY!" He yelled.

Roland and two other bodyguards entered the room. Kaiba nodded in Huxley's direction and they immediately seized him, while he struggled and yelled, and dragged him out of the room.

"Make sure this pest never sets foot on the premise again. Ridiculous" Kaiba scoffed.

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><p><strong>EA: Short, but I really didn't think it was appropriate to try and attempt to write everything I wanted within one chapter. I tried to and failed. So, I just decided to post this. Sorry for the long wait.<strong>


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